I also agree with Blues Brother about the GB's cluelessness about what the rank and file JWs go through to attend endless mind numbing conventions. Poverty stricken single parents, rushing to get kids dressed, fed, and loaded into old cars to rattle down the roads at the break of dawn to "be in their seats" before the morning program starts. Buying lunch or brown bagging what they prepared the night before. Waiting in line for bathrooms, only to do it all over again the next day or month. As an elder I heard countless bedraggled parents recount how hard it was to afford the costs and energy to herd kids and grandma to conventions.
Instead of showing compassion to the widows, orphans, and aged, for all my time in the organization I only heard the Bethel and traveling elite complain about "late commers", people "eating out" or "eating at there seats", etc., etc.
The COs and DOs, complained if these poor bedraggled folks didn't contribute enough EXTRA to send back to Bethel. So they began a campaign of falsifying the accounts reports read to the audience with wildly padded assembly "expenses" for facilities that had paid off the mortgages eons ago. Pure lies to prod more contributions from gullible sheep. (meanwhile my 'WORLDLY employer M-F demanded exact financial disclosures to shareholders upon pain of criminal prosecution and jail time ).
Locally, our circuit had used the almost free, convenient, county fairgrounds (with public transportation) for 50 years until a NEW wizz-bang assembly hall was built 130 miles away. Attending the NEW Assembly hall now became a REQUIREMENT for more and more Circuits and counties, some 250 miles away, and an expensive burden for families that now required reliable vehicles, added travel expenses( hotels and food for everyone). I know of a number of downtrodden single parents who simply stopped going. So much for Jesus's "lighter load, for those with a heavy burden".